File photo of Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi
India today summoned Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit to protest against a court order that could allow 26/11 mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi to leave jail.
Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh conveyed strong concern at the lack of effective action by Pakistan after its anti-terror court ordered Lakhvi's release, the ministry said in a statement.
India told the Pakistan envoy that it was "extremely disturbing that despite the assurances we have been receiving over the last six years, and the recent tragedies in Pakistan, there seems to be no end in sight to Pakistan remaining a safe-haven for well-known terror groups."
Lakhvi was granted bail on December 18, drawing a furious response from India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the move.
Pakistan had assured India that it would appeal against Lakhvi's bail in the Supreme Court, but that has yet to happen. The Islamabad High Court today cancelled government orders to keep Lakhvi in prison for another three months under a special provision called the Maintenance of Public Order.
"The Islamabad High Court order on Lakhvi calls into question Pakistan's entire approach to terror," said officials in New Delhi.
Lakhvi has since 2009 been in a jail in Rawalpindi, adjacent to the capital of Islamabad. The court that granted him bail said that it did not have evidence to prove Lakhvi's involvement in the worst-ever terror attack in India, in which 166 people were killed in Mumbai in 2008.
Lakhvi is one of seven people on trial in Pakistan for the siege of Mumbai, but the trial has produced no results so far. It has been closed to the media. India has repeatedly warned Pakistan that the glacial pace of the trial is unacceptable and undermines Pakistan's stated position on checking terrorism.
Indian investigators have submitted voice samples and other evidence that reveal Lakhvi talking on satellite phones to the 10 terrorists who sailed into Mumbai and attacked its most famous landmarks.